Dehradun, March 15: The toll of coronavirus infected patients in India continues to rise, with a trainee Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer in Uttarakhand reported to be the latest among those who have tested positive for COVID-19. A top official of the state government on Sunday confirmed that the IFS officer has been diagnosed with coronavirus. Coronavirus in Maharashtra: One More Tests Positive in Pune Taking Toll of COVID-19 Cases in City to 16.

With the officer being confirmed to have contracted the novel coronavirus, the authorities would extend his stay in the isolation ward for treatment. The infected patient would be discharged only after the viral load is eliminated from his body, followed by a period of 14-28 days of quarantine.

"A trainee Indian Forest Service officer has tested positive for #Coronavirus. He has travel history to Spain. 25 samples were sent for test, reports of 18 have come and 17 have tested negative," said Uttarakhand Additional Health Secretary, Yugal Kishore Pant.

Update by ANI

This is the first confirmed case of novel coronavirus in the hill state of Uttarakhand. In neighbouring Uttar Pradesh, 11 confirmed cases were reported - including one of a foreign national. Four among them have been discharged following successful treatment. The pan-India toll COVID-19 infected cases stood at 109 by the time this report was published. The numbers are rising on day-to-day basis.

Earlier this week, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared coronavirus a pandemic -- which means that the disease is affecting all countries across the globe. With only two deaths so far, India is among the nations which have faced a minimal brunt of the disease so far. The worst affected is China, which has recorded nearly 3,500 deaths due to coronavirus, followed by Italy where the toll is nearing 1,800.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 15, 2020 08:23 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).